Dumping-car



(No Model.)

.J; G. 'TOMLINSON.

DUMPING GAR.

Patented Jan. 28, 1890.

' INVENTOR 6 m?l;laon,

IBY His-A5770RJV-r:

WITNE-SSES W UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES G. TOMLINSON, OF BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA.

DUMPlNG-CAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 420,175, dated January28, 1890. Application filed January 19, 1889. Serial No. 296,947. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that LJAMES G. TOMLINSON, a subject of the Queen of GreatBritain and Ireland, residing at Birmingham, in the county of Jeffersonand State of Alabama, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Carsfor Carrying and Dumping Coal, Ore, Coke, Ballast, Stone, and any otherSimilar Material; of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in cars, and especially in railwayor tram cars,

used and intended to be used in the transportation, carrying, anddumping of coal, ore, coke, ballast, stone, and any other similarmaterial; and the objects of myimprovement are to provide doors in a carfor such purpose which, by reason of their special position,construction, hanging and fastening, and operation, shall be strong,durable, easy to repair and renew, simple and economical in constructionand operation, secure, not subject to breakage itself or in any of itsattachments and connections, and in all its parts and connectionssusceptible of thorough inspection at all times, and shall render thecar stronger, cheaper in construction, safer, andless subject toderailment in transit, Whether loaded or empty, and easier to unloadthan any car now in use for a similar purpose. I attain these objects bythe means and mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings,wherein- Figure 1 is a vertical section of the door, showing itsconstruction and indicating at the top the method of hanging it and atthe bottom of the figure the method of attaching the fastening-chains.Fig. 2 is a front view of the door, also showing its construction andthe method of hanging it and attaching the fastening-chains. Fig. 3 (tothe left of the vertical line A B therein) is a half longitudinalsection indicating the fixed portion of the floor of the car, showingthe door both when closed and fastened and (by the dotted lines)whenopen, showing, also, the rod or shaft on which the door is hung orhinged, the method of hanging the door therefrom, of attaching thefastening or lifting chains, and of closing and opening the doorthereby, and also showing the shaft on and around which the fastening orlifting chains are wound. Fig.3 (to the right of the vertical line A Btherein) is a half side view of the car, showing the means of supportingand bracing at its ends the hanging rod and the method of turning andsecuring the lifting-shaft. Fig. 4: is a transverse section of the car,showing the door in position, its division down the center, the centraldivision running longitudinally between the gate-sills in the center ofthe car, extending upward and forming the sameangle as may be formed bythe doors when closed, and forming a support to the center of thehanging rod, showing the hanging rod, its supports and attachments, andthe method of hanging the door and of attaching the fastening or liftingchains.

Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

The fixed portions of the floor of the car, as in all cars for similarpurposes, slope downward from each end of the car toward its center, asindicated at g in Fig. 3. Across the center of the car, over the top ofits sides, or at any point above the side sills in the vertical centerline of the car, pass two rods or shafts side by side, termed thehanging rods. These rods are-supported at each end by strong bracing onthe side of the car, and both are supported at their center by thebracing used also to divide the doors. Both ends of each rod are turnedover the side of the car, so as to brace each side outwardly and preventit from spreading. The hanging rods and their supports are shown by c inFigs. 3 and 4:. The central bracing is shown at h "i in Figs. 3 and 4.By this method the hanging rods are free from contact with the weight ofthe load, although in transportation of comparatively-light freight-suchas coke-a portion of the load may be placed over the rods. In such case,and also during the loading the car with any sort of freight for whichit is intended, the hanging rods can be adequately protected againstwear and tear and possible damage, due to the impact of the load, byemploying the device shown at m in Fig. 3, which device I do not,however, claim as my invention. The hanging rods can be made heavyenough and can be sufficiently supported and braced to sustain anystrength and weight requisite. Upon i their height above the sills andthe corresponding length of the doors depends the capacity of the car.They may be placed at any point above the sills, even across the top ofthe sides of the car, and consequently the capacity of the car islimited, practically, only by the height it maybe deemed safe orexpedient to give the sides of the car, any tendency of the sides tospread being obviated by the turning over of the ends of the hangingrods. By reason of their construction and position the hanging rods donot interfere with nor weaken the frame-work proper of the car. They canbe readily removed and replaced and inspected. In themselves theyincrease the stability of the sides of the car.

From each hanging rod depends a door,

whose length is such that when closed its lower rim fits squarelyagainst the end of the fixed portion of the floor of the car, and whenopen and discharging the load it shall swing to a vertical positionclear of the track and trucks. Each door is divided on the longitudinalcenter line of the car, and the two divisions or halves are separated bythe same bracing that serves to support at their center the hangingrods. Each half-door is framed of two or three thicknesses of timberlaid crosswise, screwed together, and securely bolted to two fiat ironstraps that run from top to bottom of the door, and are formed at thetop to hook over and hinge upon the hanging rod, and are furnished atthe lower end with an eye of proper strength to receive the link towhich the lifting-chain is attached. The lower edge of the door isprotected and its durability increased by a heavy rim of sheet-iron.Each half-door is independent of its fellow, and is operated by its ownlifting-chains. The doors are placed wholly inside of and detached fromthe sides of the car and side or outer sills thereof.

The construction of the door or half-door, the hook or hinge at theupper end of the fiat iron straps and the eye and link at the lower endthereof, and the sheet-iron rim on the lower edge of the half-door isshown by Figs. 1 and 2.

The manner of hanging the door is shown at O in Fig. 3, and is furtherillustrated by Fig. 4. In Fig. 4 are shown a door in position and thecentral dividing bracing h i. The position of the door when closed isshown by 0 (Z in Fig. 3, and its position'when open by the dottedvertical lines in Fig. 3. Fig. 4 shows the door in position and itsdetachment from the sides and side sills of the car. By this method theconstruction of the door is simple, strong, and durable. Its attachmentsto the hanging rod can be made as strong and secure as need be, are freefrom damaging contact with the load, and always susceptible ofinspect-ion. The division of r 7 each door gives an increase of strengthand durability and permits them to be made heavier and stronger thanotherwise practicable, and leaves room for the efficient central bracingofthe hanging rods. There are no parts of the door liable to work looseor to fall out by reason of jars in transit. Both lifting-chains on ahalf-door must break before the load can escape in transit. Should bothchains break in transit, the door will swing clear of the track andtrucks and free from interference with the load, whereby danger ofderailment is reduced to a minimum. For the same reasons the maximum ofease in dumping is possible of attainment.

Every part of the door is easy of access and easy to disconnect forrepairs, it being simply required to split the links at the bottom ofthe half-door, raise the half-door off the hanging rod, and hang a newdoor, while, should the timber alone need repairing, it is onlynecessary to unbolt the iron straps, unscrew and remove the worn orbroken timber, insert a new piece, and bolt up the door.

The position and construction of the doors independent of the frame-workof the car render it possible to truss both the gate-sills and sidesills, and thereby greatly to increase the strength and durability ofthe car.

At or nearly over the trucks, underneath the fixed portion of thecar-floor, at each end of the car, away from the center of and runningacross the car from side to side, is a heavy rod or shaft, termed alifting-shaft. Attached to each lifting-shaft, so as to be wound orunwound around it by turning the same, are the lifting-chains, runningback from a door and underneath the body of the car. By turning thelifting-shaft the liftingchains are either tightened or slackened, andthe door thereby opened or closed. The lifting-shaft is turned by alever applied at one end thereof on the outside of the car. \Vhenthe'car is loaded, the chains are held taut in position and the doorkept closed by't-he ratchet and dog. The lifting-chains run back fromthe door to the lifting-shaft free from contact with the load, exceptwhen dumping, and from interference with the wheels, trucks, orframe-work of the car at all times.

The position of the lifting-shaft is shown at y and z in Fig. 3.

The position of the lifting-chains when the door is closed is shown by 3d in Fig. 3, and when open by curved dotted lines in Fig. 3.

The manner of turning the lifting-shaft and of adjusting the chains andof fastening and operating the doors is shown by Z in Fig. 3. By thismethod the lifting-shafts are placed away from the center of the car,and are consequently always free from contactwith the load, are easy ofaccess and open to inspection at all times, can be sufficiently bracedat the ends to give the strength needed to resist the strain of thechains, and do not interfere with the frame-work proper of the car.

The complete removal of the lifting-gear from the interior of the carleaves the same free for the reception of the load, reduces the wearand'tear of the chains and shaft, by re ducin g friction givesadditional ease in dumping, and leaves the gear free for inspection atall times. The lifting-gear may be of the maximum strength required. Theentire lifting-gear is simple in construction, easy and efiective inoperation, strong, secure, and subject to close and thorough inspection.

The entire mechanism is simple, strong, durable, effective, easilyoperated, and so placed and operated as to leave the interior of the carwholly free to receive and carry the load. Its independence of theframework of the car makes easy the removal, renewal, or repair of anypart, and permits special strengthening of the frame-work of the car inany portion where deemed advisable. In particular the position of thedoors inside of the side sills permits both the strength and capacity ofthe car to be greatly increased by trussing both gate-sills and bothside sills.

I claim as my invention, in a car for the transportation and carryingand dumping of coal, ore, coke, ballast, stone, and any other similarmaterial-- 1. A dumping-car provided with two rods 0, extending acrossthe car from side to side near the top thereof and on the middlevertical line of the car and turned over on their ends on the outside ofthe car to strengthen the sides thereof, and abrace supporting said rodsat their center, substantially as described.

2. A dumping-car provided with the brace at its middle extending towardthe top of the car, the two hanging rods 0, extending across the car atits middle and supported on the brace at their center, and doors hingedupon the rods and adapted to swing on each side of the brace,substantially as described. 40

3. The combination, in a dumping-car, of the fixed sloping floors g, thebrace located along the middle of the car at its center between the endsof the floors, the rods 0, extending across the car and supported attheir center by the brace, and the double doors hinged upon the rods andclosing against the lower ends of the floors on each side of the brace,substantially as described.

4. A door for a dumping-car, composed of two thicknesses of plankinglaid crosswise and secured together and provided with two parallelstraps of metal extending lengthwise of the door and projecting beyondit at each end, the upper ends of the straps being formed into openhooks to serve as hinges, and the lower ends being formed into eyes forthe attachment of the chains or other operating devices, substantiallyas set forth.

5. A combination, with a car having the co sloping floors g, of thetransverse liftingshafts located over the trucks beneath said floors,the hanging rods 0, extending across the car at its middle and near thetop thereof, the brace located between the ends of the floors andsupporting said rods, the doors hung upon the rods on each side of thebrace and shutting against the ends of the floors, and the chainsattached to the lower edges of the doors and passing beneath the floorsg to the lifting-shafts, substantially as described.

JAMES G. TOMLINSON.

Witnesses:

J. D. EAGAR,

P. H. CARPENTER.

